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Diffstat (limited to 'Documentation/filesystems/aufs/design/02struct.txt')
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diff --git a/Documentation/filesystems/aufs/design/02struct.txt b/Documentation/filesystems/aufs/design/02struct.txt new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..0092b3dcfbe0 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/filesystems/aufs/design/02struct.txt @@ -0,0 +1,258 @@ + +# Copyright (C) 2005-2020 Junjiro R. Okajima +# +# This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify +# it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by +# the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or +# (at your option) any later version. +# +# This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, +# but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of +# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the +# GNU General Public License for more details. +# +# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License +# along with this program. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. + +Basic Aufs Internal Structure + +Superblock/Inode/Dentry/File Objects +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +As like an ordinary filesystem, aufs has its own +superblock/inode/dentry/file objects. All these objects have a +dynamically allocated array and store the same kind of pointers to the +lower filesystem, branch. +For example, when you build a union with one readwrite branch and one +readonly, mounted /au, /rw and /ro respectively. +- /au = /rw + /ro +- /ro/fileA exists but /rw/fileA + +Aufs lookup operation finds /ro/fileA and gets dentry for that. These +pointers are stored in a aufs dentry. The array in aufs dentry will be, +- [0] = NULL (because /rw/fileA doesn't exist) +- [1] = /ro/fileA + +This style of an array is essentially same to the aufs +superblock/inode/dentry/file objects. + +Because aufs supports manipulating branches, ie. add/delete/change +branches dynamically, these objects has its own generation. When +branches are changed, the generation in aufs superblock is +incremented. And a generation in other object are compared when it is +accessed. When a generation in other objects are obsoleted, aufs +refreshes the internal array. + + +Superblock +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +Additionally aufs superblock has some data for policies to select one +among multiple writable branches, XIB files, pseudo-links and kobject. +See below in detail. +About the policies which supports copy-down a directory, see +wbr_policy.txt too. + + +Branch and XINO(External Inode Number Translation Table) +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +Every branch has its own xino (external inode number translation table) +file. The xino file is created and unlinked by aufs internally. When two +members of a union exist on the same filesystem, they share the single +xino file. +The struct of a xino file is simple, just a sequence of aufs inode +numbers which is indexed by the lower inode number. +In the above sample, assume the inode number of /ro/fileA is i111 and +aufs assigns the inode number i999 for fileA. Then aufs writes 999 as +4(8) bytes at 111 * 4(8) bytes offset in the xino file. + +When the inode numbers are not contiguous, the xino file will be sparse +which has a hole in it and doesn't consume as much disk space as it +might appear. If your branch filesystem consumes disk space for such +holes, then you should specify 'xino=' option at mounting aufs. + +Aufs has a mount option to free the disk blocks for such holes in XINO +files on tmpfs or ramdisk. But it is not so effective actually. If you +meet a problem of disk shortage due to XINO files, then you should try +"tmpfs-ino.patch" (and "vfs-ino.patch" too) in aufs4-standalone.git. +The patch localizes the assignment inumbers per tmpfs-mount and avoid +the holes in XINO files. + +Also a writable branch has three kinds of "whiteout bases". All these +are existed when the branch is joined to aufs, and their names are +whiteout-ed doubly, so that users will never see their names in aufs +hierarchy. +1. a regular file which will be hardlinked to all whiteouts. +2. a directory to store a pseudo-link. +3. a directory to store an "orphan"-ed file temporary. + +1. Whiteout Base + When you remove a file on a readonly branch, aufs handles it as a + logical deletion and creates a whiteout on the upper writable branch + as a hardlink of this file in order not to consume inode on the + writable branch. +2. Pseudo-link Dir + See below, Pseudo-link. +3. Step-Parent Dir + When "fileC" exists on the lower readonly branch only and it is + opened and removed with its parent dir, and then user writes + something into it, then aufs copies-up fileC to this + directory. Because there is no other dir to store fileC. After + creating a file under this dir, the file is unlinked. + +Because aufs supports manipulating branches, ie. add/delete/change +dynamically, a branch has its own id. When the branch order changes, +aufs finds the new index by searching the branch id. + + +Pseudo-link +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +Assume "fileA" exists on the lower readonly branch only and it is +hardlinked to "fileB" on the branch. When you write something to fileA, +aufs copies-up it to the upper writable branch. Additionally aufs +creates a hardlink under the Pseudo-link Directory of the writable +branch. The inode of a pseudo-link is kept in aufs super_block as a +simple list. If fileB is read after unlinking fileA, aufs returns +filedata from the pseudo-link instead of the lower readonly +branch. Because the pseudo-link is based upon the inode, to keep the +inode number by xino (see above) is essentially necessary. + +All the hardlinks under the Pseudo-link Directory of the writable branch +should be restored in a proper location later. Aufs provides a utility +to do this. The userspace helpers executed at remounting and unmounting +aufs by default. +During this utility is running, it puts aufs into the pseudo-link +maintenance mode. In this mode, only the process which began the +maintenance mode (and its child processes) is allowed to operate in +aufs. Some other processes which are not related to the pseudo-link will +be allowed to run too, but the rest have to return an error or wait +until the maintenance mode ends. If a process already acquires an inode +mutex (in VFS), it has to return an error. + + +XIB(external inode number bitmap) +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +Addition to the xino file per a branch, aufs has an external inode number +bitmap in a superblock object. It is also an internal file such like a +xino file. +It is a simple bitmap to mark whether the aufs inode number is in-use or +not. +To reduce the file I/O, aufs prepares a single memory page to cache xib. + +As well as XINO files, aufs has a feature to truncate/refresh XIB to +reduce the number of consumed disk blocks for these files. + + +Virtual or Vertical Dir, and Readdir in Userspace +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +In order to support multiple layers (branches), aufs readdir operation +constructs a virtual dir block on memory. For readdir, aufs calls +vfs_readdir() internally for each dir on branches, merges their entries +with eliminating the whiteout-ed ones, and sets it to file (dir) +object. So the file object has its entry list until it is closed. The +entry list will be updated when the file position is zero and becomes +obsoleted. This decision is made in aufs automatically. + +The dynamically allocated memory block for the name of entries has a +unit of 512 bytes (by default) and stores the names contiguously (no +padding). Another block for each entry is handled by kmem_cache too. +During building dir blocks, aufs creates hash list and judging whether +the entry is whiteouted by its upper branch or already listed. +The merged result is cached in the corresponding inode object and +maintained by a customizable life-time option. + +Some people may call it can be a security hole or invite DoS attack +since the opened and once readdir-ed dir (file object) holds its entry +list and becomes a pressure for system memory. But I'd say it is similar +to files under /proc or /sys. The virtual files in them also holds a +memory page (generally) while they are opened. When an idea to reduce +memory for them is introduced, it will be applied to aufs too. +For those who really hate this situation, I've developed readdir(3) +library which operates this merging in userspace. You just need to set +LD_PRELOAD environment variable, and aufs will not consume no memory in +kernel space for readdir(3). + + +Workqueue +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +Aufs sometimes requires privilege access to a branch. For instance, +in copy-up/down operation. When a user process is going to make changes +to a file which exists in the lower readonly branch only, and the mode +of one of ancestor directories may not be writable by a user +process. Here aufs copy-up the file with its ancestors and they may +require privilege to set its owner/group/mode/etc. +This is a typical case of a application character of aufs (see +Introduction). + +Aufs uses workqueue synchronously for this case. It creates its own +workqueue. The workqueue is a kernel thread and has privilege. Aufs +passes the request to call mkdir or write (for example), and wait for +its completion. This approach solves a problem of a signal handler +simply. +If aufs didn't adopt the workqueue and changed the privilege of the +process, then the process may receive the unexpected SIGXFSZ or other +signals. + +Also aufs uses the system global workqueue ("events" kernel thread) too +for asynchronous tasks, such like handling inotify/fsnotify, re-creating a +whiteout base and etc. This is unrelated to a privilege. +Most of aufs operation tries acquiring a rw_semaphore for aufs +superblock at the beginning, at the same time waits for the completion +of all queued asynchronous tasks. + + +Whiteout +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +The whiteout in aufs is very similar to Unionfs's. That is represented +by its filename. UnionMount takes an approach of a file mode, but I am +afraid several utilities (find(1) or something) will have to support it. + +Basically the whiteout represents "logical deletion" which stops aufs to +lookup further, but also it represents "dir is opaque" which also stop +further lookup. + +In aufs, rmdir(2) and rename(2) for dir uses whiteout alternatively. +In order to make several functions in a single systemcall to be +revertible, aufs adopts an approach to rename a directory to a temporary +unique whiteouted name. +For example, in rename(2) dir where the target dir already existed, aufs +renames the target dir to a temporary unique whiteouted name before the +actual rename on a branch, and then handles other actions (make it opaque, +update the attributes, etc). If an error happens in these actions, aufs +simply renames the whiteouted name back and returns an error. If all are +succeeded, aufs registers a function to remove the whiteouted unique +temporary name completely and asynchronously to the system global +workqueue. + + +Copy-up +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +It is a well-known feature or concept. +When user modifies a file on a readonly branch, aufs operate "copy-up" +internally and makes change to the new file on the upper writable branch. +When the trigger systemcall does not update the timestamps of the parent +dir, aufs reverts it after copy-up. + + +Move-down (aufs3.9 and later) +---------------------------------------------------------------------- +"Copy-up" is one of the essential feature in aufs. It copies a file from +the lower readonly branch to the upper writable branch when a user +changes something about the file. +"Move-down" is an opposite action of copy-up. Basically this action is +ran manually instead of automatically and internally. +For desgin and implementation, aufs has to consider these issues. +- whiteout for the file may exist on the lower branch. +- ancestor directories may not exist on the lower branch. +- diropq for the ancestor directories may exist on the upper branch. +- free space on the lower branch will reduce. +- another access to the file may happen during moving-down, including + UDBA (see "Revalidate Dentry and UDBA"). +- the file should not be hard-linked nor pseudo-linked. they should be + handled by auplink utility later. + +Sometimes users want to move-down a file from the upper writable branch +to the lower readonly or writable branch. For instance, +- the free space of the upper writable branch is going to run out. +- create a new intermediate branch between the upper and lower branch. +- etc. + +For this purpose, use "aumvdown" command in aufs-util.git. |